The new service, AudioFeast delivers more than 400 channels of news, sports and entertainment radio programming in an "all you can listen to" format for MP3 players, mobile devices and the PC. The company also announced plans to add portable music to its subscription service in October.
"Our goal is to reignite the passion consumers once felt for radio programming, and deliver that experience on a portable player in high fidelity," said Tom Carhart, AudioFeast's co-founder and chief executive officer.
More Than 70 Media Partners
AudioFeast has licensed a large selection of news, sports, drama, comedy, business and entertainment channels along with a variety of hobby and niche programming options. A sample includes: A&E, Bloomberg Radio, BBC Radio, Discovery Channel, History Channel, NPR, SportsNews Radio and The Wall Street Journal Radio Network. As the service expands in the coming weeks, more than 100 channels of music will be added, including pop, jazz, electronica, trance, R&B, rock, alternative, classical genres and more.
AudioFeast's Web-based broadcast network is built on a secure, patent-pending media distribution system called the "Virtual Broadcast Network" (VBN). Based on next-generation, peer-to-peer technology, the VBN delivers radio programming to a variety of portable devices, and over several networks, with far greater efficiency, reliability and lower costs than traditional distribution methods.
The VBN technology enables the company to offer the audio equivalent of cable television for MP3 players. From automatic content transfer to portable devices to the way content is aggregated for easy browsing, AudioFeast eliminates consumer work. Listeners can easily pause and skip programs or songs, and enjoy them from the desktop or transfer to a select MP3 player for portable entertainment.
Pricing & Availability
A one-year subscription for programming is $49.95. Pricing for AudioFeast's music service will be announced in October.
AudioFeast's talk programming is currently compatible with MP3 players from Creative Labs, Dell, iRiver, iRock, RCA and Rio. Portable music programming will be compatible with the iRiver 700 and 800 series MP3 players at launch. AudioFeast plans to continue development towards compatibility with a growing assortment of portable devices.
- Portions from an AudioFeast Press Release
